I was out for coffee a few weeks ago with a young guy that recently began coming to our church. He shared with me how God has been really dealing a lot with him about his personal devotional time with God. After listening to him share about how his devotional life had gotten stagnate, I realized I had fallen into the same trap in my own life. I know, I know……as a pastor, prayer and reading the Bible is supposed to to be part of what we do. Bankers count money. Fireman put out fires. Garbage man pick up garbage. Pastors pray and read the Bible. I can tell you from first hand experience that isn’t true. Before I let you think that I have completely fallen off the wagon is a complete and utter backslider……let me explain. I was reading my Bible and praying, but it felt like something I had to do not something I get to do. I felt as though if I didn’t spend time with God every day that He would somehow now let my favorite sports team win that night as punishment.

After spending some time reflecting upon the conversation I had with that young man, I realized that something in me had to change. I wanted to be excited to read God’s word every day. I didn’t want to read God’s Word just to get the latest insight for a message to preach on. I wanted something for me. I was given a book by a guy named Wayne Cordeiro called, “The Divine Mentor.” It’s a book about how to have meaningful devotions every day using a very simple process called S.O.A.P. I strongly suggest going out to your nearest bookstore or ordering this book online asap. It has helped me in my daily time with God more than I can even begin to describe. I shared a talk about this subject a few nights ago at West and you can find a link to that at www.firstassemblywest.com. There, you can also get more information on the S.O.A.P Bible study method. Your relationship with God is the most important thing in your life and is thus worth investing into. Go grab the book and see for yourself.

Do you remember your mom having a set of fine china? You know…..that set of dishes that get broken out only for special occasions. Thanksgiving, Christmas, special birthdays or when the pope comes over for dinner seem to be the only acceptable time to use the dishes. For the majority of the year, they sit in a cabinet or get shoved in a storage bin and stored in the attic. Fine China is great for special occasions but let’s face the facts, paper plates are a whole lot easier. You don’t have to be careful when you use them and the cleanup is very simple.

I was reading a verse the other day that made me think of my life in comparison with that fine china that was only used during Christmas in the Baker house. It’s found in II Timothy 2:21 and it says this:

“If you keep yourself pure, you will be a special utensil for honorable use. Your life will be clean and you will be ready for the master to use you for every good work.”

I don’t know about you, but the truth of that verse leapt off the page to me. When it comes to being used by God, I don’t want to be a paper plate. The fact that Paul compares keeping yourself pure with a special utensil for honorable use tells me that it doesn’t happen very often. Purity today is about as common as the special Christmas china that is kept in the attic. Most Christians seem to be willing to lead lives that are on the fence when it comes to morals. We have become ok with just being average. Here is the kicker. I don’t want to be average. I don’t want to be a paper plate. Sure it’s easier. Sure it’s less work. But I don’t want to make it to the end of my life knowing that I was ok with taking the path of least resistance.

If I want to be a special tool that God can use, I have to be a person that keeps himself pure. Whenever a temptation comes my way, my prayer is that this thought will come racing back to my brain. Do I want to be a special tool in the hands of God and remain pure or be an average, run of the mill Christian and remain status quo? One of my greatest fears is getting to stand before Jesus at the end of my days and having Him say back to me…..”You could have been better. If only you would have kept yourself pure, I could have used you to do things that would have blown your mind.”